Group items tagged

Traditional Maori fishing operations were very well organised. Different tribes had their own fishing areas. Tribal boundaries were marked by landmarks and stakes and protected against trespassers. Fishing was often a community activity. Tasks involved everything from observing the movement of schools of fish and making gear, to catching and processing the fish. Early Maori knew a great deal about the life cycles of different fish. A fishing calendar was developed to work out when certain fish should be caught, what techniques to use, and whether it should be during the day or night. Kaimoana was a very important trading item. Coastal tribes traded it with inland iwi for goods such as birds, berries or workable stone. In Canterbury, Kaipoihai pa was a trading pa with eight different gates. It was similar to European trading sites in the middle ages.When Europeans arrived, Maori started trading with them. They bartered fish for other goods or sold it for cash. They exported fish to Australia in the early 19th century.

Maori are very knowledgeable and skilled fishers. Lines were made from flax fibre and sinkers from stones. Hooks were made from wood, bone, stone or shell. Sometimes a gorge was used instead of a hook. It was a straight piece of bone, sharp at each end and attached in the middle. When the line was pulled it turned sideways and caught in the fish's throat.

cold and harsh in comparison to tropical island Polynesia. Great ingenuity was required to grow the tropical plants they had brought with them from Polynesia, including taro, kumara, gourds, and yams; this was especially difficult in the chillier southern parts of the country. The harakeke (flax plant) served as a replacement for coconut fronds and hibiscus fibre in the manufacture of mats, baskets, rope, fishing nets and clothing. Seasonal activities included gardening, fishing and the hunting of birds. Main tasks were separated for men and women, but there were also a lot of group activities involving food gathering and food cultivation, and warfare. Art was and is a prominent part of the culture as seen in the carving of houses, canoes, weapons, and other items. The people also wore highly decorative personal ornaments, and people of rank often had their skin marked with extensive tā moko similar to tattooing.

New Zealand comprises two main islands (called the North and South Islands in English, Te-Ika-a-Maui and Te Wai Pounamu in Māori) and a number of smaller islands, located near the center of the water hemisphere. The total land area, 268,680 square kilometres (103,738 sq mi), is a little less than that of Italy and Japan, and a little more than the United Kingdom. The country extends more than 1600 kilometres (1000 miles) along its main, north-north-east axis, with approximately 15,134 km of coastline. The most significant of the smaller inhabited islands include Stewart Island/Rakiura; Waiheke Island, in Auckland's Hauraki Gulf; Great Barrier Island, east of the Hauraki Gulf; and the Chatham Islands, named Rēkohu by Moriori. The country has extensive marine resources, with the seventh-largest Exclusive Economic Zone in the world, covering over four million square kilometres (1.5 million sq mi), more than 15 times its land area.[5]

    Maori Legend – the creation of New ZealandA long time after the creation of the world – after Tane mahuta had created a woman out of red earth, breathed life into her nostrils, mated with her and had a daughter, who also became his wife and bore him other daughters, and after many other things had happened – the demigod Maui, who lived in Hawaiki, went out fishing with his brothers. They went further and further out to sea. When they were a long way out, Maui took out his magic fish-hook (the jaw of his sorcerer grandmother), tied it to a strong rope, then dropped it over the side of the canoe. Soon he caught an immense fish and, struggling mightily, pulled it up. This fish became the North Island of NZ, called by the ancient Maori Te ika a Maui (the fish of Maui) or sometimes Te ikaroa a Maui (the big fish of Maui). The Mahia Peninsula, at the north end of Hawke Bay on the east coast of the North Island, was known as Te matau a Maui (the fish-hook of Maui), since it was the hook with which he caught the giant fish. The South Island was known as Te waka a Maui, or the canoe of Maui, in which he was sitting when he caught the fish. Kaikoura Peninsula, on the north-east coast of the South Island, was the seat of the canoe. Another name for the South Island was Te wai Pounamu (the water greenstone), since much greenstone (jade, or pounamu) was found in the rivers there. Stewart Island, south of the South Island, was known as Te punga a Maui (the anchor of Maui). It was the anchor that held the canoe as Maui hauled in the giant fish.      

great carvers - the master craftsmen

Carving used to be a tapu art, subject to the rules and laws of tapu. The pieces of wood falling aside as the carver worked were never thrown away, neither were they used for the cooking of food. Women were not permitted near the carvings. The history, traditions, language and religion of the Māori make up an integral part of the carving art. To the Māori, all things possess a spirit (wairua), and a mauri (life force).

Māori weaving was made from the New Zealand flax (phormium tenax). From the flax, baskets, floor mats, skirts and cloaks were and still are made. There are more than fifty different varieties of the New Zealand flax, and the Māori know the advantages of each type of flax for its respective use.

Although Māori culture was a totally stone-age culture until the arrival of Europeans and the introduction of metal, it was highly evolved. The various working materials used before the Māori had access to metal were mainly bird bones, whale bones, ivory teeth, both dog and human bones, and also stone, from the large stone resources which had been discovered further inland within New Zealand.

› Māori : The name "Māori" originally meant "the local people", or "the original people". Māori was a word which signified "local" or "original" - as opposed to the new arrivals - white European settlers - the "pakeha". With the arrival of European settlers, the word Māori gradually became an adjective for the "Māori people". This change took place before 1815.

not been shown to be related to any languages outside Australia. In the late 18th century, there were anywhere between 350 and 750 distinct groupings and a similar number of languages and dialects

At the time of first European contact, it is estimated that a minimum of 315,000 and as many as 1 million people lived in Australia. Recent archaeological evidence suggests that the land could have sustained a population of 750,000[11].

the regions of heaviest Indigenous population were the same temperate coastal regions that are currently the most heavily populated

13% of Australians live in poverty • 14.9% of children live in poverty • 21.8% of single parent families live in poverty

Most things contain "mana" - spiritual essence. Mana is within man himself, land, nature, and also man-made objects. Contact with mana contained objects or beings by non-authorised persons or objects could cause the mana to be drained away.

In the beginning the belief was that the god Tane offered mankind three baskets of knowledge - "Nga Kete-o-te-Wananga". Within these baskets were the stories of creation, instructions concerning magic, etc. The Māori believe all living things are descended from the Gods, embodied within certain mountains, rivers and lakes. All things have a type of soul - the wairua. This is why the Māori have strong spiritual ties to the land.

Extremely strict rules of "tapu" protected ceremonial objects